Greek, German Finance Ministers To Meet In Berlin Wednesday
ATHENS -(Dow Jones)- Greece's new finance minister will meet with his German counterpart in Berlin Wednesday to press for a more flexible timetable as his cash-starved government embarks on an ambitious privatization program aimed at raising EUR50 billion, an official briefed on the meeting said Tuesday.
The Greek finance ministry issued a statement confirming that Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos would meet German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble for a working dinner but didn't say what they would discuss.
But the official said Venizelos will approach Schaeuble about seeking a more flexible timetable for Greece to sell off EUR50 billion in state-owned assets.
The talks come amid a push by the German government to involve private banks in a voluntary rollover of Greek government debt as part of an aid package for Athens aimed at averting a default.
So far, however, those talks have produced only meager results and come after a warning by ratings agency Standard and Poor's that even a voluntary rollover of Greek debt may constitute a "selective default."
According to the official, Venizelos will ask Schaeuble for clarification about Germany's policy in the event the rollover plan does not work.
In exchange, Venizelos is expected to offer assurances that Greece will cut down public spending and tackle chronic tax evasion--steps seen as critical to repairing Greece's troubled public finances.